unmesh

I did not know that. I should be grateful that my GV+Obi works fine with my fax machine, then!

CatJo

Another long-time user of an Obi device here (with GV as a backup). My main line is with VoIP.ms and I can highly recommend them; Callcentric is also well regarded (and apparently has good T.38 fax support).

For low-volume calling as the OP mentions, you would probably end up paying around $4-$6/month.

Jaimito Cartero

Great responses. I think I'm going to try out the obi200.

chgoeditor

So I'm starting to sort through all of this and I have to say, the people who design VOIP companies' website apparently don't put any thought into UX and UI...these sites suck at explaining things to a novice. And unfortunately all of the overview articles I've found seem to be commercial sites designed for SEO purposes to capture referral fees. If anyone's stumbled across a good article that explains the various routes to a novice, please do share!

OBIHAI has me thoroughly confused. Am I correct in understanding it still requires a traditional land line or VOIP service provided by a third party? Is its primary benefit low-cost international calling? Or what is the primary advantage of using this + VOIP?

gfunkdave

The Obi is just a VOIP phone adapter. You plug a regular phone into it, and you plug it into your router. You can then configure it via Obitalk's website with up to four separate VOIP accounts. It does not require a traditional landline, but some models of the Obitalk adapter support using a traditional landline as one of the phone lines available on the Obitalk.

I just use mine with Google Voice, which provides free calling in the US and Canada. I could use Google Voice on one of the four lines, get a UK number on another, a French number on a third, and so on. Or multiple US numbers.

Does that help?

Dodge DeBoulet

Another happy VoIP.ms user. The only feature currently lacking is fax, but that's entering beta testing within the next few weeks. From past experience, beta releases are very close to GA quality when offered to testers and formal GA usually follows within 2-3 weeks.

One thing that I find very attractive with VoIP.ms is that, unlike most VoIP providers, they do not charge (or count against your monthly limit on fixed plans) for calls to 8xx numbers. If you attend a lot of conference calls on "toll-free" numbers, this can be a significant benefit. Both CallCentric and Anveo charge for 8xx calls on per-minute plans, and I'm pretty sure they count them against your allotment on fixed plans just like any other call.

If you're thinking about a per-minute plan, make sure you verify the billing increment. With VoIP.ms, I believe it's 6 seconds, while for many others it varies from 12 seconds to 1 minute. That means that for VoIP.ms customers, a 30 second call actually costs half of the per-minute rate (which for domestic US calls is $0.01/min).

VoIP.ms has invested a lot of money in geographic redundancy over the last 2 years, with PoPs all over the US, and will have them very soon in Australia and Europe.

I know it sounds like I'm making a sales pitch for these folks . . . sorry. Weigh the options and associated costs. For stability and support you won't go wrong with Anveo, CallCentric or VoIP.ms. In the end, though, VoIP.ms seemed to be the best bargain for me.

cubbie

When I used to do more faxing, I had an eFax subscription that was very handy. I'm not sure it'd be worth the price (something less than $20?/mo) for you if you only send a couple of faxes a month. I think there are probably free online services (eFax may offer one) for up to, say, five faxes per month. You do need to have a scanner to make an online fax service feasible.

UA Fan

You can set up 911 through callcentric at $1.50 per month. It also includes caller ID.

OP see this:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...s-obitalk.html

I really like Obi especially because GV's international rates are the cheapest and i can call directly from my handset rather than dialing a calling card company and then dialing the phone number.

OT you can use GV on a smartphone through the voice app and call international using GV rates.

Sometime back Google announced they would end support to Obi but they reversed that.

D582

+1 to VoIP.ms. I use them and have both Canadian and US DID numbers. They integrate really well with Asterisk-based PBX solutions as well (i.e. FreePBX).

Jaimito Cartero

I ordered an Obi200 this morning, and Amazon is supposed to deliver later today.

I'm going to try using it just with my GV account first. I'd guess that if I want to be able to have the caller ID list my normal number, I'd have to use another VoIP service with it?

Camarones

I've been using VoIP.ms since 2011 and I'm generally pleased. I currently use it with both Obi ATAs and polycom IP phones as well as various softphones (native Android client, zoiper, X-lite on Mac OS , 3cx on windows). The service is extremely flexible but as a result the config can seem intimidating for the non-technical user. I started with an obi110 and recently upgraded to an obi200. Outbound Faxing usually works for me but its good to hear VoIP.ms is looking to support that specifically.

unmesh

Another thought is to try it for a few days with the number they give you. Once you're satisfied with the service, you could consider porting your landline number to them. You can always have Google Voice forward your calls to whatever "real" phone number you have or choose to have in the future.

That is what I did.

Jaimito Cartero

As this is my main business phone number, I doubt I'd ever permanently transfer it.

I'd probably forward my 800 number to my VoIP number, as that's where 90% of my calls come in. I'd love to block unavailable numbers, but I still get some calls from customers who use this type of blocking. I often get up to 40% solicitation calls.

Fake "Google" calls, all sorts of insurance, credit card processing and the like waste lots of time.

unmesh

I've been increasingly using Google Voice to selectively block persistent sales calls.

SeriouslyLost

Personally, and I chose them for the sheer simplicity, I use Vonage for the "landline" and RC Fax for the digital fax line. $25/mo for the phone service, which gives me unlimited...everything... and feeds the calls through to (and from (calls over wifi whether the carrier allows it or not!)) my cell wherever I am, if I want. The feature set is simple, clear, and easy to use. The fax line is $50/year as a digital fax.